According to this classic 1960s Toyota Land Cruiser commercial, the Land Cruiser had the "toughest, guttiest and keepgoing-est power package ever built into a 4X4". How better to prove it than with some unnecessary off road abuse footage?

Arguably, The 1960s were a high point for the SUV. Many companies offered utilitarian 4 wheel drive SUVs that were tough and capable. Toyota's offering, the Land Cruiser seen here was no exception. In the 1960s the Land Cruiser, a simplistic SUV designed as much for off road use as on road, was Toyota's top selling product in the United States. As you can see from the commercial, there were no indications in the Land Cruiser of the beige and bloat that would someday run amuck at Toyota.

It is our firm belief that more new truck and SUV commercials should feature the kind of off road abuse seen in this Land Cruiser advertisement. As this vintage ad says, in between shots of the Land Cruiser off roading and crossing a river several feet deep, the Toyota can "go over rocks and ridges through mud, flood, sand and snow". That's exactly what we want to see more of, bold claims over footage of vehicles driving through several feet of water.

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A big obstacle in bringing back off road abuse in truck and SUV commercials is building vehicles that can stand up to the abuse. Is there a new small SUV that can drive through 3 feet of water without an issue like the Land Cruiser seen here? I'm not sure, but I would certainly like to find out in between my favorite TV shows. Whether we will ever discover the threshold of new trucks in modern advertising is questionable. Until then, we have to satiate our desire for SUV and truck abuse in advertising through classics like the Land Cruiser advertisement seen here.